BIDDEFORD — The visiting Thornton Academy boys basketball team looked poised to wrap up an overtime victory over rival Biddeford on Tuesday evening, however, the Tigers would make an improbable last-minute comeback to win 56-53.

The Trojans were ahead 53-51 with 37 seconds left in overtime and were set to inbound. Biddeford’s Kyle Norton would intercept the entry pass, which would eventually lead to a game-winning 3-pointer by Jerome Criado with 25 seconds remaining. 

“The play wasn’t originally for me but my teammate knew I was hot. He saw me when I came up off (the screen), got it to me and I hit it,” said Criado after the win.

Criado would later hit two free throws to set the score to 56-53 and secure the win. The win for Biddeford was the Tigers’ first over TA since 2006 and snapped a 20-game losing streak to the rival Trojans.

Biddeford led for much of the contest and was ahead 44-41 with 22 seconds remaining in regulation. TA’s Payton Jones would come up with the play of the game at that point and hit a game-tying 3-pointer to force overtime.

“I think that five-overtime game against Marshwood helped us out in that once they made that three, we were just like, ‘we’ve been in this position before, teams can make big shots on us, we have to make the next play,’” said Biddeford coach Justin Tardif.

The Tigers set the tone early, and would build an 11-point lead with three minutes remaining in the first half. TA would insert William Chapman into the lineup, and he would rack up eight points in the second quarter and help the Trojans cut the deficit to just 21-18 heading into the break.

“We knew that it would be a close game and it would be tough for either team to run away with anything. Our shot selection was a little iffy there, and (Chapman) came in and scored eight points and was a nice addition for their team,” said Tardif.

TA coach Bob Davies was pleased with his team’s adjustments throughout the second half.

“We played a little bit better defense, got a few more rebounds. (Biddeford’s) a good team … (Criado) made some good shots,” said Davies.

DeSean Cromwell led Biddeford with 14 points while Criado added 13, Carter Edgerton 12 and Cody Saucier 11. Jones led TA with 13 points while Chapman chipped in 10 and Jack Pyzynski eight.

Although the Tigers had trouble closing the door on the Trojans, Criado and his teammates felt confident down the stretch.

“We just had to keep running our offense. We knew that it was going to be a half-court game, we just had to get our plays done. If they were going to make a run, we were going to make a run,” said Criado.

Tardif was pleased with his team’s shooting in the later periods, and was excited to see Criado come up big for the Tigers.

“He’s a straight up shooter — he doesn’t need a lot of space to get his shot off. He understands his role really well, he knows what he does well, and he plays to that. That was a big shot,” said Tardif.

After dropping two of their last three games, the Tigers improve to 5-2 this season. TA falls to 4-3 on the season after tough losses to Windham and Bangor last week.

Criado hopes the Tigers will keep the momentum going as they enter the second half of the regular season.

“It’s great — it’s a confidence booster,” said Criado. “We’ve worked hard in practice and now we’re up there with the other teams.”

— Associate Sports Editor Alex Sponseller can be reached at asponseller@journaltribune.com or at 282-1535 ext. 323. Follow the Journal Tribune Sports Department on Twitter @JournalTsports.

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